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Another picture you don’t want to see

All the wonderful things dogs do for humans is one recurring theme of this website.

All the terrible things humans do to dogs is another.

ohmidog!— as regular readers know — is not all fluffy, feel-good dog news all the time. We think it’s important not to turn a blind eye to animal abuse, in any of its forms, because only when the public fully knows what is going on can steps be taken to do something about it.

A case in point: Patrick, the starving New Jersey pit bull tossed down a trash chute at a high-rise apartment in Newark.

His reprehensible treatment, and subsequent resiliency, is not just tugging at the heartstrings of dog lovers everywhere, it’s uniting them to demand that those who abuse dogs be subject to punishments more in line with the ones received for violent crimes against humans.

If no one had seen those disturbing pictures of what Patrick looked like when he was taken in by Associated Humane Societies, there probably wouldn’t have been the outcry that has ensued. Publicity about his case has led not just to donations for his care, and that of dogs similarly abused, but to the sprouting of grassroots movements aimed at strenghtening animal abuse laws.

A female retriever mix, believed to be about 4 years old, was found wandering in the 6500 block of Lake Brandt Road in Greensboro on Tuesday after apparently being scalded with boiling water.

She was wearing a collar and a rabies tag, but the numbers could not be read, according to Marsha Williams, the animal shelter’s director. The nameless dog was responsive when she arrived at the animal shelter, but she was emaciated and suffering third-degree burns on her face, ears and legs. She died 30 minutes later.

Very little is known about the dog, or what happened to her — and given as she has no known name, given that she didn’t survive — she’s not likely to emerge as a poster child or Internet sensation.

We share her story — or at least the sparse details known — for the same reason we passed along Patrick’s story; and that of Phoenix, a pit bull burned in Baltimore; and Susie, a puppy tortured in Greensboro; and Louis Vuitton, burned and beaten in Alabama; and Buddy, dragged to death behind a truck in Colorado.

And that’s because the public needs to know — the non-sugar-coated truth, unfathomable as it is, painful as it may be to see and hear.

That’s the only way change happens. Our hope would be that change would involve more than just harsher sentences for animal abuse. More severe sentences will send a message, serve as a deterrent and satisfy our need for vengeance, but they don’t address the underlying causes that, without making compassion for animals part of every school’s curriculum, ensure such incidents will continue.

ohmidog! tries not to be one of those websites that shoves animal abuse down your throat daily (sometimes the days just don’t cooperate, though). Similarly, it tries not be one of those blissfully ignorant websites that look only at the happy dog news, pawsing only for bad puns.

If you want to be totally shielded from the sad and gory, the depraved and the troubling, don’t come here.

Because when humans sink this low, whether they be punks in an alley, breeders at a puppy mill, or scientists in a laboratory, we will make note of it and, if we can, more than likely include a photo, too — not for the purpose of sensationalizing, but to inform and spark action.

That said, to see the photo, continue. To avoid it, don’t click, don’t scroll, just go back to our main page.

Other photos of this dog — and, be warned, they’re even more upsetting than this one — can be found at the Guilford Animal Shelter’s Facebook page.

Comments

My heart and mind cannot conceive the pain she must have been in. Bless her soul.
….And may the A-hole(s) that hurt her rott in hell!

Comment from smoketoomuchTime April 1, 2011 at 9:42 am

“She was wearing a collar and a rabies tag” meaning that, at one time at least, she was someone’s pet. Had she been microchipped, it’s more than likely that the owner could have been located or traced.
We, as a society, had better start doing a better job in our treatment of animals, and we should start by producing fewer of them, and doing it more humanely. We also need to educate the public about the LIFELONG responsibility that pet ownership is. Owning a pet should be considered a privilege.., because it is. As Gandhi said: “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” Based on recent and ongoing events, I wonder what kind of grade might we receive today?

This is a great post to put up and I commend you on writing it. There are a lot of dog lovers out there who don’t want to know what goes on in the dark corners and turn a blind eye to it.

I for one don’t. It hurts to see and watch dogs like these ones suffer, but we need to in order to understand and to help.

Keep posting these stories ’cause they are important.

Comment from KellyTime April 1, 2011 at 12:39 pm

I wonder if my comment on the post about Sunny prompted this post. When I read that post, it was after a series of bad news that had me ready to go all ostrich. Don’t get me wrong, John, it is important to report it all – good, bad or otherwise. It is just that the bad is so horrible & upsetting. Plop animal abuse on top of folks suffering in Japan & Haiti, people not being able to keep their homes, jobs or feed their families, add a dash of gay bashing, stir in human rights atrocities in the Middle East & season with corporate greed and one can end up suicidal from trying to stay informed. It isn’t just this blog. I’m afraid it is the world.

Comment from StarlaTime April 1, 2011 at 12:53 pm

I agree. If no one saw, or heard what is being done to animals, then nothing would ever change! There is a movement going on, to have the laws changed, to actually punish the abusers, rather than turning a blind eye, or smacking them on the hand. If no one stands up & says “Hey! This is WRONG!” then nothing changes. Years ago, people turned a blind eye when a man beat his wife, or his children or even drank & drove his car, but enough outraged people came together & changed the laws & the awareness on these problems. That is what needs to be done about the huge problem of animal abuse. Some things have been done, but not nearly enough. Getting these horrific stories out there lets people & lawmakers know that there IS a problem that must be dealt with. Thank you John, for doing your part to help end animal abuse!

Comment from MayTime April 1, 2011 at 1:10 pm

when i looked t
at that poor dog-my heart went ooo nooo i cry a little and said to my husband NO ONE SOULD HURT DOGS!!! THE POOR THING!!!!:[

Thank you for grabbing hold of my bootstraps and pulling them up for me. I needed the talking-to. I’d just yesterday told my husband I couldn’t take any more bad dog news. You’re right. If we do the ostrich thing, nothing will change. Thanks, John.

Comment from bmorepugmomTime April 2, 2011 at 12:02 pm

Thank you John. By sharing this info, you make it possible for people like me to want to keep working for change. You’re an inspiration and a blessing to all the animals out there without a voice. As graduation approaches and the job search begins, your words go through my head on a regular basis….”keep fighting for dogs”.

Sending you lots of pug love from Baltimore! We miss you and have been thinking about you and Ace!!

Comment from LizTime April 8, 2011 at 11:29 am

Update – police investigated and determined that the dog wasn’t abused but was sick and under veterinary care for auto immune deficiency and possible blood disease condition.